Shinobi's Honor
by Evernia
Summary: Haruno Sakura’s feeling a bit lonely on her birthday, and everyone’s favorite sensei is there to save the day. KakaSaku. Warning: major flufffest.


Shinobi's Honor: A KakaSaku ficlet.

* * *

Sakura sighed. Today was her birthday, and she had wanted to throw a party at the park where the cherry trees bloomed in the spring. However, it seemed that everyone was either out, on a mission, or visiting family, and the wind was lonely when it whistled through the thin, rustling branches above the weathered bench she was sitting on. She could hold the party next week, but, still, it wouldn't be the same…

_It's quiet…_Sakura thought. _I never thought the silence would suit me, but it does._ She smiled faintly, memories of herself six years ago, as a loudmouthed genin, surfaced in her thoughts.

Sakura drew a deep breath in and stretched, settling lengthwise on the long bench on her back, as she watched the bright crescent moon in the sky.

Suddenly, a figure blotted out the view above her. Sakura abruptly sat up, startled.

"S-s-sensei!" she stuttered, surprised. "What are you doing here?"

She didn't need to ask how he had found her; he always knew. And besides, this was her favorite place to be in all of Konoha.

Kakashi's mask moved with his lips. "Happy birthday, Sakura-chan." He sat down beside her, the bench creaking, and ruffled her pink locks affectionately.

"Kaka-sensei! Stop!" she squealed and scolded him, smoothing her mussed hair back into shape after batting his hand away. When she was done, she turned to him in slight surprise. "Y-you _remembered_! You remembered my birthday!"

The jounin smiled slightly, a faint crease on his mask. He always had a soft spot for Haruno Sakura. "Of course I did, Sakura-chan. What kind of a ninja would I be if I forgot my student's birthday?" he chuckled.

He reached in one of the pockets of his ANBU vest, rifling around a little until, finally, he pulled out a small box, clumsily covered in pink tissue paper, and tied with a silver ribbon. Sakura inwardly giggled. _He might be jounin, but he still can't wrap gifts for his life…_

"Here. This…is for you, Sakura." He reached for one of Sakura's small, cold hands, and pressed the gift into her palm with warm, strong fingers.

"Kakashi-sensei…t-thank you! Thank you so much! This means a lot to me," she beamed at him. _Especially since **you **remembered, and no one else is here…_

"Go on, open it," he urged Sakura.

Sakura smiled and nodded. "'kay, Kakashi-_kun_," she teased.

Her hands untied the ribbon, tore through the crinkly tissue paper, and unwrapped a small lidded box. She slowly lifted the lid…and found a small, silver locket with a _sakura_, her namesake, engraved and embossed with rose gold on it. Her breath nearly caught in her throat.

Her lips trembled, and her eyes moistened. "What? You don't like it?" Kakashi asked hastily, sounding anxious and nervous. "Um, I, um, I could-"

"No, silly!" Sakura interjected. "It's just…it's so beautiful! I love it, sensei!"

She surprised him by suddenly scooting over and hugging him around his neck, face resting on his shoulder. _It's…funny…I think I could stay like this…forever…_

She felt the copy nin stiffen, but relax slowly as one arm hugged her back, while the other reached for the forgotten box.

"Let me put this on you, Sakura," he rumble underneath her arms locked in an embrace around him, and she reluctantly pulled away. _He's so warm._

Sakura bowed her head while her teacher slipped his arms around her head, deftly fastening the chain at the nape of her neck. His fingers brushed her skin slightly, and she shuddered imperceptibly. _He gives me the shivers…why?_

He pulled back and looked at her with approval. "Beautiful," was his only word.

_Short, clipped, and to the point,_ Sakura observed. _So Kakashi._

Still, she felt herself flush slightly, an unbidden blush coming to her cheeks. "Thank you, Kakashi-sensei."

"Kakashi, Sakura. I'm Kakashi. I'm not your teacher anymore."

"Mm…okay, Kakashi-sen – Kakashi," she rolled on her lips, tasting the name, the word. "Kakashi?"

"Hm?" was his answer.

"I'm really, really grateful for your gift…"

"You're welcome." He slipped out a kunai from his shuriken pouch and cut a small lock of hair off. "Come here, Sakura." The lips speaking her name, his deep voice, the sound of it, made Sakura feel a dizzying rush of euphoria. She felt lightheaded…had she imagined…Kakashi had said her name almost..._tenderly? _

_What's happening to me…?_

She moved closer, and Kakashi's hand snapped open the locket, dropping something shining quicksilver there. "From me to you, Sakura. …I'll…always be with you." His hand closed around hers, which was holding the locket.

A fuzzy warm feeling spread from the tips of her toes to her fingers, tingling. "Hmm," she hummed, and after a _snip_ she dropped a lock of her hair, tied with the silver ribbon from her gift box, into Kakashi's breast pocket. "From me to you," she smiled, echoing his earlier words.

"Thank you," he replied, reaching for other hand and holding them in his own, close to his chest. His one visible eye was crinkled with a genuine smile.

The closeness struck her the, as their breaths mingled with each other. Kakashi was staring intently at her, but self-consciously, she averted her eyes and gazed at his forehead protector that was covering his Sharingan eye instead. Slowly, Kakashi raised one of his hands to her face, holding her chin and turning her face so that her eyes met his. Time froze for Sakura when he did this. She was acutely aware of everything: his hand holding hers, dwarfing it, his other one firmly grasping her chin in an oddly tender hold, the proximity of the whole situation. She was almost practically in his lap.

Suddenly, it just felt so _right_ to Sakura, and she moved to bridge the gap between them.

Her small, pink lips brushed against his masked ones briefly, the warmth evident even through the cloth covering. _What am I doing? _Sakura asked herself, but she soon smothered that thought. She was only living in the moment.

She pulled back from him and smiled faintly at the sight. The elite ninja seemed to have gone into a state of shock, his eye wide and his jaw now hanging open slackly.

_Looks like I'll have to fix this_, Sakura thought mischievously. She then wrapped her arms around him, molding perfectly against him. The scent of him pervaded her nose, dust and faraway places and steel and tea, and made her heady. She pressed her face into his neck, wanting more. His pulse fluttered erratically underneath her lips, and he finally responded.

He dipped his head and laid it beside hers, cheek-to-cheek. "Sakura…" he breathed huskily in her ear, tickling it.

"Stay with me, Kakashi? Please-"

"Shhh…Sakura." He swept aside some strands of hair that had fallen in her eyes, and pressed his lips to her forehead in a soft kiss that sent warm, pleasant shivers running through her bloodstream. _Best birthday…ever…Kakashi-kun…thank you…_

She tilted her head up cutely, giggled and brushed her lips against his closed eye, tracing her fingers along his firm jawline, and settled down resting against him, her body fitting to his, the couple's arms wrapped around each other. Her hands played with his silver hair, while her head rested in the nook of his neck. His mouth was pressed gently to the top of her head, and his hands were affectionately stroking her head.

They both sat there, still and alive, breathing in each other, under the moonlight, for a while.

After some moments passed, Kakashi spoke up. "Sakura-chan?" he whispered.

"…mm?" she responded sleepily, enjoying the feeling of him against her. Two souls, two spirits, together…

"…yes. Sakura, yes. I'll stay with you, I'll be here…with you. Forever. Shinobi's honor."

* * *

Sou. Eh, one-shots are about the only things I can manage. x3

I can't finish anything. I mean it. Anyway

KakaSaku is my favorite pairing. After that comes SasuHina and SasuSaku. Yep. 'cause Kaka-sensei is totally awesomeliciously cool.

This was written in math class 'cause I felt like a bit of fluff at the time. Well, actually, I felt like a ton of teeth-rotting, saccharine-sweet fluff. Mm. Yep. Took about an hour total. Well, it was started in math class, finished after school, and touched up on the computer. I love my wittle notebook, yes I do!

Unbetaed, tell me if you find any errors – I mean it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ( --- overuse of exclamation marks kill. Trust me, overkill sucks. Don't do this.) So now you know I really mean it when I say to tell me about errors you find. And somehow, the ending is …kind of icky. I can't find a way make it 100 percent full and complete and fit the story. Blah. I'm horrible at closings. And the "errors" in this AN are intentional. I hope. They are a result of casual usage of language colloquialism device-thingy. And now, I must bid you all adieu, and give thanks for reading my story, because I now feel myself rambling. :facedesk:

Please, please review! Constructive criticism highly, highly encouraged!


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